USC Union Mourns the Loss of Two Student Athletes
The University of South Carolina Union and surrounding community have been mourning the loss of two Lady Bantams that were killed in a head on collision.
On February 7th, four Lady Bantams were traveling from Spartanburg back to Union after watching a friend play softball. A driver crossed the median and hit them head on. Freshman Mia Stokes, of Charlotte, NC, died at the scene and sophomore Grace Revels, of Lancaster, SC, was transported to the hospital where she later died. Stokes' twin sister, Mallory, and driver Devyn Royce were also transported to the hospital for their injuries.
Mia was a freshman at USC Union studying physical therapy, and played third base for the Lady Bantam Softball Team. Grace, a sophomore at USC Union, was studying to go in to Special Education. She was the catcher for the Lady Bantams.
Saturday, February 15th was the first time taking the field since the Lady Bantams lost their teammates. The Lady Bantams played their hearts out during the emotional games and took home two wins over Patrick Henry Community College.
During the first game, a walk-off double led USC Union Bantams Varsity past Patrick Henry Cc 4-3 on Saturday. The game was tied at three with USC Union Bantams Varsity batting in the bottom of the seventh when Summer Clinton doubled on a 3-2 count, scoring one run.
In the first inning, Patrick Henry Cc got their offense started when a player grounded out, scoring one run. After Patrick Henry Cc scored one run in the top of the fifth, USC Union Bantams Varsity answered with one of their own. Patrick Henry Cc scored when another player grounded out, scoring one run. USC Union Bantams Varsity then answered when Montana Walton doubled on a 3-2 count, scoring one run.
Clinton was on the rubber for USC Union Bantams. She went seven innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and striking out nine. USC Union Bantams smacked one home run on the day. Emilee Price went deep in the third inning. Walton led USC Union Bantams Varsity with two hits in four at bats.
All Bantam athletes, faculty, staff, students, and many members of the Union community attended a memorial service hosted by USC Union on February 21st at the Lady Bantam softball field. SC House of Representative (Dist. 42) Doug Gilliam conveyed his support to the campus and families, and introduced Congressman Ralph Norman. Congressman Norman expressed his condolences and presented both families with a United States flag that flew over the Capitol.
Due to overwhelming response from the community to offer support during the tragic loss of Grace and Mia, campus established two opportunities to donate in their memory. One opportunity is a fund that was started for a new scoreboard that will have Grace and Mia's name and number on it. The scoreboard will honor their memory at the field for future Lady Bantams. The second opportunity that was established was the "Grace Revels and Mia Stokes Memorial Scholarship". The purpose of this scholarship is to provide support for a female athlete attending USC Union with an overall GPA of 3.0.
This was a tragedy that effected the lives of so many, but the support that the Lady Bantams, students, and the campus received from so many helped to ease the heartbreak.
